After listening to The Atom Age’s newest disc Kill Surf City, I immediately thought of Operation Ivy so it was no surprise to find that The Atom Age is from Berkeley. The band is led by Ryan Perras (aka x-Queers drummer Ryan Kwon Doe) and the music is aggressive, high-energy garage punk. The Atom Age wears its ska influences proudly but the saxophone and drum/bass rhythms aren’t the centerpiece of the music as it was with many of the third-wave ska bands. There are a lot of different elements that are in play on this record which range from old-school 50/60’s Rock & Roll to surf rock and saxophonist Brendan Frye takes some avant-jazz breaks so it is tough to put a single musical label on this disc. Solidarity Records describes the band’s sound as “Rocket from the Crypt meets Less than Jake” and this is as good a descriptor as any.

Going back to the Operation Ivy comparison, one key difference is that, while Operation Ivy preached messages of unity, The Atom Age are angry and Ryan Perras’ gritty vocals have the same righteous fire that Joe Strummer had. All of the songs are delivered with a melodic one-two punch will have you singing along with the gang-vocal choruses.

The Atom Age gave a quote in a recent interview that sums up the spirit of this album. When asked about the monkey on the album cover, the band said “the Primate is a symbol of Rock ‘N’ Roll to us. It’s a loud, intense, semi intelligent creature, who is always trying to have a good time. It also reminds us of the primal element of humans and how the best Rock ‘N’ Roll is from the gut and appeals to the less evolved more ape-like part of our brains. Plus chimps look cool in space suits and are courageous explorers.” To this point, Kill Surf City is 'rock n’ roll from the gut'.

The Atom Age is currently out on a coast-to-coast tour that starts heading down the East Coast later this month. The local tour stop is at Lulu’s in Greenpoint on November 7th.

Links:
The Atom Age